Dazer Laser: Safer than a Taser? Me Oh My, It Looks Like a Phaser. Bad guys better watch out…while they still can! (Video!)

God, I love laser weapons. I really do. They represent the future, they represent high-technology (high-tech), and, let’s face it, they represent fun. I mean, what could be more fun than blasting an enemy combatant (military scenario) out of his socks with a military-grade tactical/combat laser/ray gun? O.k., so I can think of a couple of things immediately off the top of my head that are potentially more fun–but killing bad guys with a ray gun has to be right up there. And, yes, I’m kidding. Of course, the U.S. military doesn’t call them ray guns. It calls them directed energy weapons (DEWs), or laser weapons.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on one’s perspective), the Dazer Laser Defender (pistol format) and Guardian (flashlight format) series handheld “light fighting technologies” (more specifically, laser dazzler-type weapons), brought to you by the good folks at Laser Energetics, Inc., are non-lethal/”less violent” weapons designed only to (safely) visually impair and disorient the target, not kill it. The Defender models are particularly interesting, since they’re reminiscent the original phaser from the TV show Star Trek.

Billed by the company as the “ultimate non-lethal weapon” and described as “tactic-changing technologies”, the Dazer Laser weapons “permit the enforcer (Dazer Laser ™ user) to engage and control a threat [or multiple threats] at greater range and at lower risk to both the enforcer and the threat”, and they can be weapon-mounted on rifles, carbines, shotguns, and pistols, presumably via Mil-Std-1913 “Picatinny” rail.

Another important goal of the Dazer Laser tech is to prevent eye injury to the target. The Dazer Laser weapons accomplish this through the employment/utilization of a “variable-focus” beam. Mike Levine, Laser Energetics’ sales director, emphasized this point to DefenseReview (DR) and told us that the Dazer Laser weapons are visual impairment weapons (or, vision impairment weapons), NOT blinding weapons. But don’t let all that eye-safe stuff fool ya’. When it comes to combat, the Dazer Laser is apparently one “mean beam”.

The Dazer Laser weapons’ variable-focus beam can be adjusted by the user/operator on-the-move/on-the-run via an on-board beam intensity adjustment dial, allowing the operator to quickly and easily dial in the appropriate distance to the target. It’s DR’s understanding at present that this variable-focus aspect is what separates the Laser Dazer weapons from previous “laser dazzlers” like the aptly-named CHP Laser Dazzler ™ Non-Lethal Laser Weapon, made by LE Technologies, LLC, which, to DR’s understanding, utilizes a fixed-focus beam (unconfirmed/unverified). I wrote about the Laser Dazzler ™ back in January 2005. “CHP” stands for “Compact High Power”, by the way.

DefenseReview would prefer an auto-focus capability, where the Dazer Laser beam’s intensity automatically adjusts based on the weapon’s distance to the target (like a camera lens, for instance). DR doesn’t see why this can’t be accomplished, since, after all, this is a line-of-sight (non-lethal) laser weapon, and there’s no better way to measure distance to a target than a laser. A single beam should theoretically be capable of performing both tasks simultaneously (disabling/disorienting and measuring distance). Worst case scenario, the company has to add an additional distance-measuring laser to the weapon, and link it via microprocessor to the weapon’s primary beam emitter.

DR sees a potential military combat/force-protection role for a ruggedized version of the Dazer Laser weapon system, where the system is deployed on ground-vehicle and helicopter-mounted weapons with up to 360-degree firing capability. Provided they can be sufficiently ruggedized, Dazer Lasers can be mounted on both manned cupola AND helicopter-mounted weapons (including the FN M240 7.62mm GPMG/MMG, U.S. Ordnance M60E4/Mk43 MOD 1 7.62mm MMG, M134 7.62mm Gatling Gun/Minigun systems, and M2HB “Ma Deuce” .50 BMG HMG) and unmanned weapons like 20-40mm cannon systems operated via remote weapon station (RWS), the Recon Optical CROWS systems being just one example. Another option would be to mount the Dazer Laser unit coaxially, if the required level of ruggedization can’t be achieved. Even with a coaxial mounting solution, the system would still have to be very rugged to be able to handle the combination of vehicle vibration and muzzle blast overpressure caused by the heavier gun/cannon systems.

In other words, you should “Daze ‘Em Before Ya’ Tase ‘Em.” (Slogan/Tagline Copyright: David Crane). How’s THAT for a tagline? I came up with it two days ago. Anyway, the Tasers, in turn, precede firearms in the aforementioned force continuum.

Pricing is yet to be determined, but the Dazer Laser products should start rolling off the line within approx. 30 days.

At present, there are no civilian/commercial Dazer Laser Defender or Guardian models available or planned, but DefenseReview hopes that changes as soon as possible. I sometimes carry a Taser X26 as a backup/secondary weapon/less-lethal option to my Glock 19 (G19) high-capacity 9mm Parabellum (9x19mm NATO) pistol, but I wouldn’t mind having a Dazer Laser Defender or Guardian as an option for my own force continuum. Would you?

Editor’s Note: “Dazer Laser” is the proper nomenclature, not “Laser Dazer”, although it really works both ways. Both names read well, sound good, and describe what the weapon system does.

Disclaimer: Regarding our first paragraph, DefenseReview only supports the killing or maiming of bad guys (i.e. malevolent attackers) if/when necessary, and as a last resort to all other force-continuum options, after non-lethal and less-lethal options have been either considered or exhausted. We always prefer to use, and recommend the use of, non-lethal or less-lethal options/weapons whenever possible/available. We were simply engaging in a little dark/morbid humor, not being serious. In other words, we were just kidding.